Rages, Rings, Requests

Tegan

“Did they actually train to fight in all of that?” Tegan grouses. The itchiness from that blasted room effect has been getting worse and worse throughout the viewing. Tegan keeps scratching, even though it provides no relief.

“Well,” Caoimhe responds, finishing up some notes, “my militia training was more than just how to shoot a gun. We practiced rescue operations, too. Frankly, the few deployments we had was to help with natural disaster relief. That wasn’t the interesting thing I noticed.”

“More perverted hidden transformations?” Tegan guesses.

“Their Hotel itself shifts and warps very blatantly. It’s almost like there is a narrative logic behind that. The gang over there needs answers? They find a library. They need a date idea so ridiculous that it can’t be confused for romance? A Hibachi Dino appears and Mona ends up wearing the dumb hat after watching it. They need a bit of drama? The Hotel makes a second running trail just so the cute Master goes to the wrong one.”

Tegan bristles, “Your point?”

“Maybe we aren’t looking hard enough. How much exploring have you done?”

“Very little.” Tegan admits.

Caoimhe shifts back to Kevin. He sighs, “Me too. Might be worth bringing up to the others. Any other thoughts about the season?”

“Fiona has the right idea, generally.”

Kevin stares at her. She bristles some more, her ears pointed back. He answers, “I get that she’s angry about being kidnapped and shoved into Van’s harem. The way she is lashing out is not the right idea, though. It might satisfy her in the short term, but it is going to lead to a bad end.”

Of course he’d take the Hotel’s side. I am just so ITCHY!!!! Tegan feels the growl bubbling inside her and she lets it out.

Kevin looks unfazed. He notes, “And what has you being angry at the show done for you? You’ve pissed off the audience enough to get them to mess with you, multiple times I might add. You made at least a temporary enemy out of Ootah, who could lay a world of hurt on you before someone could stop her if she wanted. And I saw how upset you were last night after spending time with Mona. So, are you going to keep attacking the thing that gave you a second chance with her or are you going to try to win her heart?”

Tegan snarls, “You going to help make up for stealing her away or are you just going to keep rubbing it in?!?!”

Kevin looms over the vicious vixen. “I did not steal her away and I am not rubbing it in. I will help you, for Mona’s sake, if not yours. What was your fight with her about?”

“Mona was going to give that homewrecking skank a ring instead of giving one just for me.”

“We both know that you aren’t telling the truth. Try again.”

Tegan glares at the bull, scratching like a madwoman. STUPID ITCHINESS!!!! FUCK YOU SHAR!!!!

Tegan is appalled as Kevin moves his clothes into his inventory and summons his weapon. “Okay. I took a spell for occasions like this. It’s called Zone of Truth. I cast it and people affected by the spell can’t lie. Either you submit to the spell or this conversation is over.”

Tegan blinks, thinking about it. She answers while scratching, “Fine. Do it. I always tell the truth.”

The sensation of the spell is strange. Tegan understands that she cannot lie. The only way to prevent an unwanted truth to come out is to stay silent.

“What was the fight about, Tegan?”

“Paraphrasing, I demanded a ring. Mona said she was going to buy the homewrecker a ring too. We argued about how we are supposed to be exclusive with each other. Mona said that I was being cruel and that I don’t love her.”

“Okay, that feels much closer to a complete answer. Surprised you gave me that much. Ooh, I am under the spell effect, too. I should apologize. That was a little bit meaner than I would like.”

Tegan stares, wearing a hole in Dawn’s face as she waits for Kevin to finish looking at her slack-jawed. He finally asks, “Do you love her?”

Not even going to apologize... Tegan growls.

“Answer the question. Do you love her?”

Tegan is surprised by the answer she gives, “I don’t know. How do you know if you love someone?”

She is again surprised. One of those teen girl magazines Tegan would ignore at the grocery store appears in her lap, flipped open to a cheesy “Do you love her?” quiz. Tegan feels the compulsion to answer it truthfully. The results make her furious.

“‘Attraction Unveiled – You enjoy her company and feel attracted, but it’s not true love. It’s normal to feel uncertain about your feelings, as attraction can sometimes grow into something deeper. Discovering the difference is key!’ What is this bullshit?”

“An answer,” Kevin points out, “Maybe not the one you want, but the one you got.”

“But, I shouldn’t be attracted to Mona. I’m...” the word hitches in Tegan’s throat.

“Rank everyone in the harem by how attracted you are to them,” Kevin orders.

Tegan rattles it off, again surprised by the words flowing out of her mouth, “Mona, Tessa, Andromeda, Gaia, Jenny, you as Caoimhe, Mineko, Ootah, Winter, you as you, then Craig.”

“Notice a pattern?”

Tegan opens her mouth, only for her denial to stick in her throat. The vicious vixen’s scratching has torn a bigger hole in Dawn’s image; it is like she’s boring a hole in her forehead. Kevin plows through, “So, Mona was first, then the ladies by decreasing breast size, then the dick-havers by decreasing femininity. Admit it, Tegan. At least do that.”

The spell fades. She can lie again. Kevin is staring her down. “I’m...” She pauses, unable to say the truth. Her itching is so intense at this point that the silence is broken by a massive ripping sound. Her shirt is torn completely open. The itchiness fades a smidgen. She hears a ding, different than the usual XP one. The angry archer checks her phone.

Tegan: Progress (1 / 3)

“THE FUCK DOES THIS EVEN MEAN!!!!!!!”

Kevin sighs. Tegan shows him the phone, absolutely shaking with wrath. He takes a deep breath, then answers, “What matters more right now, that progress bar or your relationship with Mona?”

“The progress bar, obviously!” Tegan growls, then feels the spell settle in again. Kevin must have recast it.

“Try again, Tegan. What really matters right now?”

“My fiancée preparing to toss me aside...”

Kevin sits beside her and offers a side hug. Tegan reluctantly accepts. When he answers, Tegan kind of wishes that she hadn’t. “Look, Tegan, Mona wants a real relationship with you. I don’t understand why, I don’t understand how she thinks it’s even possible, but she does. You need to meet her partway. Let’s start by you answering that question before the spell dropped. Thinking about the pattern, what are you?”

Tegan tries to wait out the clock. Kevin still is able to look down upon her menacingly even with her height increase. She finally mutters, “I don’t want to be more of a freak than the show already made me.”

“Well, you have had this before the show. I am only trying to get you to admit it to yourself. We can deal with the self-hating bigotry after. What are you?”

Tegan squeaks out an answer, “Perfectly... the opposite of straight...”

Kevin sighs, “Close enough...”

“And I am extremely, irrationally jealous of giant cow-tits!” Tegan blurts out. She slaps a hand over her mouth. Stupid truth compulsion. Stupid Kevin for using that spell.

“Even though that, so long as you don’t use your magic, you have the biggest in the harem?”

Tegan’s eye twitches at that. Kevin doesn’t prod that bit further. He shifts to a different sore spot, “So, you are attracted to Mona, but you don’t love her. What do you feel about her, then.”

Tegan is less surprised by this truth than the last several, “She’s MINE.”

“You see the problems with that, right?”

Tegan tries to say it, to vocalize her denial, but the words again are shut out. There isn’t a single problem with that. She promised to be mine, so she’s mine. It’s that simple. To throw me away, to betray me like that, it’s not going to happen...

Kevin gets up. “Look, Tegan, you should talk with Mona about this tomorrow on your date. You should be honest about it. No more excuses about being ‘perfectly straight’ or anything like that. Just... honesty. And get some help with the mess that is how you feel about your sexuality. The sooner you accept it, the sooner you and Mona can build something. I’m going to go write up some thoughts, then head to dinner with everyone. Just do what you need to do.”

Tegan watches him go. She scratches her thighs, muttering curses about that vampire freak Shar again. I need to get out of these track pants before they drive me crazy!

The bunny slut speaks up from the concession stand, “Hey, dummy, want to check that note you got this morning?”

Tegan pulls out the crumpled piece of paper and begins to read:

I am willing to ask for a refund or to let you shift the room activation to anyone you want as long as you: one, stop blaming Shar for everything going wrong; and two, go on a date with anyone other than Mona and actually try to engage with them.

Samson Phonopimpedjan

Her eye twitches. So the asshole that made me itchy has a name, huh? Well, fine then. This Samson However-I-Am-Supposed-To-Pronounce-That-Last-Name wants me to stop blaming Shar? I already had, as I blame the homewrecker for trying to steal Mona away from me, but whatever. He just made the top of the vengeance list!

Tegan carefully takes off her tracksuit pants and panties. The itching stops. She turns to the bunny-freak and asks, “Just where is this Samson from?”

Bonnie takes a look at the note and smiles, “Let me just load up that season for you...”

Mona

Mona and Ootah are in a smithy of some sort. Skye, wearing protective gear and nothing else, is putting some work on a sword. Mona watches with some interest as the drow alternates between heating and hammering to shape the blade. Ootah leans back on a post, waiting for the lilac-skinned elf to finish.

Skye drops the blade into a water bath to cool it, wiping some sweat off of her brow.

“Hey, kids. Did you need something? I still need to check on the canteen staff for their mid shift food prep before getting back to the nursery.”

“Uh,” Mona begins, rubbing the back of her neck, “I wanted to talk about getting some rings made?”

“Oh, wonderful!” Skye exclaims, “you are starting to prepare for weddings? I should tell my lady love. We can throw you such a big show wedding, just like Andy is going to have. Oh, so much to do...”

“Wait! Whoa. I just have a couple of fiancées I plan to marry... eventually. For now, I just need to get some engagement rings made?”

Skye looks visibly disappointed. “Oh. I see. It’s okay. My lady love wasn’t ready to marry me when she did. I understand that things take time. Well, we can do a number of things. We can size rings and cast them. We can use other forging methods to make some intricate designs. But, may I recommend basic magic rings? 100 BP, for the cost of materials and enchantment, for a ring that will magically resize itself and customize their design to reflect their purpose. These rings can also be used to hold other enchantments later.”

That is kind of pricey, but I did spend more on Winter for his thing. And I bet there is some rule about how I am supposed to spend a bunch on them...

“I can help pay, Mistress, if you want...”

“No, Ootah, I got it. Three of those, then?”

Mona: -300 BP

Skye presents three basic metal bands. They look waaaaay bigger than they need to be. The drow notes, “It will take about an hour for the ring to shape itself properly. Don’t do anything too strenuous until then. And tell your other blushing bride to be that you love her, too.”

Mona nods, not sure how well that is going to go, given yesterday’s fight. She turns to her sexy orc fiancée, getting down on her knee again, “I know I asked yesterday morning, but, do you want to marry me... at some point in the future?”

“Of course, Mistress.”

Ootah presents her hand and the ring is very loose on her. Mona puts one of the remaining two on her finger then stands up. Ootah lifts Mona up gently by the chin then kisses her square on the lips. Just like in the bedroom, Ootah kiss is slow, powerful, and unyielding. Mona melts into it; when she realizes that the kiss is done, she finds herself resting on Ootah’s breast. In the process, they seemed to have moved out of the hot smithy and back into the hallways of the amenities floor.

Ootah: +2 XP (Kiss the Girl)

“Now, if you will excuse me, Mistress, I should bother Auntie Skye about an armor resizing while we are here. Did you want me upstairs for tonight? Just in case?”

Mona doesn’t want to leave the comfort of resting on that great green globe. “I have it under control. I think, if Craig is going to apologize, he’ll only do it if we’re alone. I should give him the chance to?”

Ootah nods. “And, if he doesn’t? Or, worse, he tries something like he did last week?”

“I have a backup plan.”

Ootah sighs, “I just don’t want you hurt, Mona. You call for help and I will be there.”

Mona licks a bare nipple and forces herself to sit up. “I know you will. But, it looks like Skye is trying to close up shop.”

Ootah musses with Mona’s hair, then stands. Mona enjoys the sight of the orc striding back into the heat of the smithy. I guess that I should get ready for tonight.

Mona: Weekly Bounty Update – Spend one-on-one time with every contestant (5/10)

Jenny

Jenny strolls through the “backyard” of the Hotel, soaking in the late afternoon sun after spending so much time indoors today. The coastal breeze working through her hair feels comforting. The smell of loamy earth from the gardens brings her a sense of connection. A fat bee lands on her nose and makes her giggle. It rests for a moment, then buzzes away contentedly towards the tropical flowers of the botanical garden.

To think I would have freaked out if a bee landed on me before the show, scrambling for my epi-pen just in case. I guess some good came from all of this after all...

Then, Jenny sees her. Tessa exits the pool completely bare, the water slowly dripping down her curves. Jenny initially wants to run, still embarrassed from last night, but she takes a deep, full body breath, then stands still.

Tessa seems to approach her a little tentatively, almost as if she expects the dryad to flee. The sea elf throws some clothes on as she moves. She tucks a few loose strands of emerald hair behind her fin-noduled ears as she says, “Hi.”

“Hey.”

“I don’t know exactly what I did to suddenly make you uncomfortable last night, but...”

Jenny interrupts, hands waving, “No, it’s, like, my fault or whatever. I overreacted.”

Tessa looks at her with a tinge of concern. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Jenny pauses. She knows she should; they need to clear the air. Can she calm her nerves and press down her bubbling excitement for maybe asking someone out for the first time long enough to do so? Jenny nods, rubbing her thighs together.

Tessa directs them to one of the picnic tables by the pool. Jenny gladly sits down onto a sunbeam striking the bench. Tessa sits across from her, biting her lower lip slightly.

Jenny squeaks out, “So, my Experimenting Elderberry transformation hit me hard last night.” She feels her blush start to form across her face.

Tessa nods. “From what I gathered, Mona was very... engaged with that season when she watched bits of it.”

Jenny can see Mona being... engaged with some of what they watched; she still needs to ask, “And you?”

“Several members of that harem have their charms, I won’t deny that. But, I generally want more than just mere titillation.”

Jenny forces herself to ask, “Did you... you know, notice anything, like, super weird when you dropped off those pajamas for me?”

Tessa’s face turns the shade of blueberries. “So, that puddle...”

“Was like the wet spot you left in the bed...”

Tessa’s face turns more purple, “I am sorry about that, Jenny. I shouldn’t have done that. I don’t know exactly what I am feeling about you, but I should have better judgment than that.”

Jenny grabs one of Tessa’s hands. She gently runs her thumb along the edges of the webbing between her fingers. “I don’t know exactly what I am feeling about you either. I don’t know if this is just, like, the transformation or if Winter is right and this is just, like, a Dani and Carly thing or something. But, would you, like, wanna hang out together in, like, a date or whatever?”

Tessa pauses. “Those girls I saw in a painting in the museum? What do they have to do...”

“Winter said that Carly wasn’t sexually attracted to women, but they started dating? After I came down from the transformation high, I realized that I am definitely straight right now. That minor quest could fix it or there is probably something in the store. I should totally go get more details and decide which prize I would want for the quest reward, but I’m rambling...”

Tessa looks like she put it all together, even before Jenny’s voice runs out of steam. She nods, “So, you’re willing to experiment with being romantically involved with me, even though you are not into women sexually? And you are considering changing your sexuality for either Mona or me?”

Jenny nods, “Like, not, like, right away, but yeah. So, again, wanna, like, do a date, like, tonight?”

Tessa looks pensive. “I haven’t really been on a date in twenty years. I’m terribly out of practice.”

Jenny is surprised how disappointed she is with that answer, even as her arousal spikes for being rejected for the first time. The dryad withdraws her hands, “It’s, like, okay if you don’t...”

“I didn’t say that, Jenny. I would love to spend time with you like that. I hope I don’t disappoint.”

The air around them is suddenly scented with cherries. Jenny looks down and she sees a wet spot on her skirt. Did I just really have a mini-orgasm from her saying yes?

Tessa stands up and tucks a tress of hair out of Jenny’s face. The former teacher offers a bit of grace, “I will give you some time to get ready. We’ll find something appropriately suitable for a date after dinner?”

Jenny watches her leave, excited and eager for tonight. I have a date! Oh, gawd, I have a date in maybe an hour? I need to go change clothes!